Yesterday was the day our church kids took a church field trip. It was State Bible Drill day. They get checked out of school about lunchtime, ride the church vans up to Hattiesburg, and go through the drill with churches from all around.
When the van came to the middle school to get M and her friends, they noticed that one of them wasn't going. She hadn't scored well enough to make it to the next level and had decided not to go on the trip. The friends decided that this just wouldn't do. They decided to do what they could to get her to come. This child's mother is a teacher at the middle school, so they went to the mom's room to convince her to let the child go. But that class was at lunch. So they paraded to the cafeteria to find said Mom. (It should be noted that these girls had already changed into their bible drill T-shirts and jeans and the cafeteria is full of uniformed students in khaki and maroon or navy. They did draw stares and glares.)
They found the teacher/mom in question, who acquiesced to their proposition, but there was nothing on which to write the required permission note. Someone produced a napkin for the purpose, but still there was no pen. (at this point in the story, I asked M if the note were written in ketchup, and she just rolled her eyes) No, someone else produced a pencil, the note was written (on the napkin) and turned in to the office. The friend went on the church trip with all her buddies, secure in the knowledge that she was loved by those friends and her mother.
Take this a step farther: Are we willing to draw the glares and stares of the world to get our friends on the road to Heaven? Are we willing to use the tools at hand to get the job done? Are they worth the trouble? My child has set the standard for me.
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